A composite is a mixture of at least two different component materials. Composites typically display properties that are not attainable in any of their individual components. A nanocomposite is a mixture of at least two different component materials where at least one of the components has one or more dimensions (length, width, or height) in the nanometer region. Nanocomposites very often display new, interesting, and useful properties that the conventional composite materials lack. The special properties displayed by nanocomposites are due to their small building blocks. The very small particles of the component materials have immense surface areas which result in there being a great deal of surface interfaces between them. This, in turn, influences the properties of the nanocomposites to a great extent. In conventional composites the materials have sizes on the micrometer scale with much less surface area and many fewer surface contacts and therefore, less influence on the overall properties of the materials.
Aspects of the invention include a method comprising: dissolving a metal ion salt in a solvent system to form a metal ion salt solution, wherein said solvent system is common to said metal ion salt and a given polymer; adding an epoxide to said metal ion salt solution to form an epoxide-containing metal ion salt solution; dissolving said polymer in said solvent system to form a polymer solution; adding a portion of the polymer solution to the epoxide-containing metal ion salt solution to form a polymer-containing, epoxide-containing metal ion salt solution; and stirring said a polymer-containing, epoxide-containing metal ion salt solution until said solution gels.
A further aspect of the invention includes a nanocomposite produced by the process comprising: dissolving a metal oxide salt in a solvent system to form a metal oxide salt solution, wherein said solvent system is common to said metal oxide salt and a polymer; adding an epoxide to said metal oxide salt solution to form an epoxide-containing metal oxide salt solution; dissolving said polymer in said solvent system to form a polymer solution; adding a portion of the polymer solution to the epoxide-containing metal oxide salt solution to form a polymer-containing, epoxide-containing metal oxide salt solution; and stirring said polymer-containing, epoxide-containing metal oxide salt solution until said solution gels.
Another aspect of the invention includes a nanocomposite comprising: an inorganic sol-gel polymer phase comprising at least one metal-oxide and at least one epoxide; and an interpenetrating organic polymer phase entwined in said inorganic sol-gel phase.